Game, Set, Match
by kaprikorn
Summary: Jaken gets caught plotting, and then the joke is on him. Oneshot


**Game, Set, Match**

**Neon Chandelier**

"Rin," Jaken beckoned toward the little girl, murmuring in his nasally voice. "Rin!"

The little girl hopped up from her place beside Kagome, dropping her crayons and skipping gleefully over to the imp, not at all concerned about the naturally nauseous-green skin and failing to notice the flash of something less-than-innocent in his remarkably round eyes.

He urged the girl closer when she stopped a few feet from him, and paused for a moment to make sure that no one was paying too much attention to what he was going to tell her to do.

"Do you know what would make Lord Sesshomaru happy Rin?" he asked her, smiling a little wider than necessary and secretly hoping that she would take the bait. When she smiled brightly at him and shook her head, he cackled gleefully and quickly explained his plan too her in hushed tones, not once noticing how Inuyasha's left eye had cracked open and was watching them intently, nor how his white ears twitched with each indignant screech Jaken made.

When the little girl finally began walking hesitantly toward the half demon, Inuyasha yawned and stretched, smirking a little too brightly at the child, who was turning bright red in embarrassment. He walked toward their camp happily, obviously amused with something, for the silly smirk never left his face. Not once did he look in Jaken's direction.

When Inuyasha finally passed through the trees and Jaken could no longer see his form, the demon let out a sigh of relief and watched as Shippou hopped up from his spot before the colouring book and ran toward Rin, who was still standing in the same spot, looking mildly ashamed of herself. The tears beginning to form in her eyes were completely unnecessary, and Jaken was just beginning to form the Top Ten Reasons Why It Was Not His Fault and Lord Sesshomaru Should Not Kill Him list when Shippou tugged the marker from her hand and raced her back to Kagome, who, seemingly oblivious to what had just transpired, passed Rin a red crayon.

With the girl completely distracted by the miko and the kitsune, Jaken leaned against the nearest tree and smiled to himself in relief. Dozing off into a light sleep for a well-deserved afternoon nap, he held the staff of two heads to his chest and relaxed. Maybe he had been unable to follow through with his plan today, but there was always tomorrow. Rin would still be up for it the next day as well, he was sure.

Shippou watched the toad doze off and tucked the marker into his pocket. Excusing himself from his colouring game with Kagome and Rin he scampered off after Inuyasha, sure from the funny look he had seen in the hanyou's eyes as he headed toward their camp earlier, that he too had caught Jaken's plan and was looking for a way to get back at him. Shippou, being the trickster that he was, had just the plan, and he knew that Inuyasha could never say no to it.

When the little imp awoke in the light setting of early twilight, he rose to his feet and scurried off to the nearby stream. The reflection that greeted him when he looked into the water sent him running off to camp, ready to turn whoever had drawn the childish pictures on his face into a large pile of lumpy ashes, courtesy of the staff of two heads.

Striding into camp with as much bravado as he could muster with his current look, he tried to ignore the howling laughter that erupted from the group, as well as the humorous look in Ah-Un's eyes as the two heads paused in their grazing to stare at him.

He began pushing his way toward Shippou, who was colouring with a rather large set of crayola markers at his own relaxed pace, knowing instinctively that he was the one who had turned Jaken's own plan against him, when Inuyasha's gruff voice halted him mid-stride.

"Plot all you want, you stupid toad," he began, "but don't forget that if you get caught, there'll only be trouble."

With a sinking feeling, Jaken tried to maintain as much dignity as he had left. Walking straight through the clearing and past where Sesshomaru was seated, he could have sworn he heard the demon lord chuckle. Almost.

_I'm sorry guys, I had to do it. This month's first quote for the community IYQ on Livejournal was "You're only in trouble if you get caught!" from Disney's Aladdin, and the picture of Jaken I had sitting next to me proved too much of a temptation to ignore. This oneshot is exactly 805 words, not including my author's note. I hope I made you giggle._


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